Hindu nationalism: Encyclopedia II - Hindu nationalism - Hindu Rashtra

Hindu nationalism - Hindu Rashtra

Hindu Rashtra, literally Hindu Nation is what Hindu nationalists describe India as - a nation of people whose culture, history is founded in the theology and traditions of Hinduism. In this interpretation, a Hindu is connoted beyond just as an adherent of Hinduism.

Some proponents have argued that even Muslim and Christian Indians are Hindus, as their ancestors were Hindu, and despite their religion, their culture and heritage is the same as that of India's natural Hindu majority.

Many Hindu nationalists also prescribe to a vision of Akhand Bharat (United India), wherein the partition of India is reversed to found a nation based on what they consider as India's natural territorial extent in terms of the bonds of history, culture, economy and people.

Hindu nationalism - Hindutva

Main Article: Hindutva

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, an Marathi freedom fighter and one of the earliest Hindu nationalists, wrote the treatise on Hindutva, defining it literally as Hindu-ness. The treatise identified India as a Hindu Rashtra, or Hindu nation in terms of culture and heritage. It asserted that all of its people had in history adhered to Hindu religious values, and thus should be identified as Hindus not only for religious affialiation but also for nationality.

Although the RSS was founded before the conception of Hindutva, it drew closer to Savarkar's ideas in the 1950s and 1960s.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Hindu Rashtra", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki